Frequently, especially in the home, phone messages left for absent household members with another member of the household are not recorded and are consequently not delivered. Even when a message is physically recorded by the answering party, the caller has no control over what portion of the message is actually recorded, nor can the caller verify the accuracy of the record. Further, paper messages are easily and frequently misplaced or destroyed before delivery to the intended recipient.
There currently exist many mechanisms by which a caller can electronically leave a message for an absent party, such as the answering machine and the voicemail system. These systems function, however, only when the call is unanswered by a person at the physical location of the receiving telephone station set. Once the telephone goes off-hook, such as when a person actually answers the phone, these systems are disabled and cannot then be used to record a message for the intended recipient.
In the business setting, some methods do exist for routing a caller to voicemail once the call has been answered. Such systems, however, generally require a private branch exchange (PBX) or similar type of internal network. Such a system is often not economically practical for a small business, and nothing of the type exists for the ordinary home. What is needed, therefore, is a system that will allow a caller to a private phone line to electronically leave a message, even after the phone has been answered by another party, wherein the message may be retrieved by the intended recipient when desired.
Accordingly, a primary object of the present invention is to provide a way for callers to electronically leave a message for a party other than the party answering the call. In particular, an object of the present invention is to relieve an answering party of the obligation to physically record or otherwise remember a message for another party. A further particular object of this invention is to give the caller the security of knowing that a message left for an absent party will be accurately recorded and delivered.